Iceland will be looking for revenge when they face Switzerland at Laugardalsvollur in Reykjavik today in the top tier of the UEFA Nations League. The two teams have already met in this competition in September and at that time Switzerland secured a commanding 6-0 victory in St. Gallen. Steven Zuber, Denis Zakaria, Xherdan Shaqiri, Haris Seferovic, Albian Ajeti and Admir Mehmedi scored for Switzerland in that match, which produced the sixth victory for the Swiss out of the seven direct matches that have been played between the two nations. The only time Iceland avoided defeat against Switzerland was in 2013, when they recorded a 4-4 draw in the qualifications campaign for the 2014 World Cup.
Iceland have been unable to produce anything of note in the UEFA Nations League so far, they have lost both against Switzerland and Belgium, conceded nine goals and scored none. However, last week they seemed to have regained some of their enthusiasm and strength as they pulled off a creditable 2-2 draw against France in a friendly match. Moreover, Iceland had a 2-0 lead over France in Guingamp and held on to that lead until the 86th minute. Aron Gunnarsson is unfit and won't be playing in Monday's match, while was not called up to the squad this time.
Switzerland had a great start to their UEFA Nations League campaign as they defeated Iceland 6-0 in Semptember, but a few days later they lost 1-0 against England in a friendly. That defeat was repeated in a competitive match last week, the Swiss lost 2-1 in Belgium as Manchester United striker Romelu Lukaku bagged two goals. Belgium are now leading the table in Group 2, three points clear of Switzerland and six clear of Iceland. The current situation in the group means that whoever wins Monday's match can still fight with Belgium for top spot, while the loser can think about relegation to the second tier of the competition.
Probable line-ups:
Iceland: Halldorsson - Saevarsson, Ingason, R. Sigurdsson, Magnusson - Gudmundsson, Bjarnason, Sigurjonsson, Skulason - G. Sigurdsson - Finnbogason
Switzerland: Sommer - Lang, Akanji, Schar, Rodriguez - Zakaria, Xhaka - Ajeti, Shaqiri, Zuber - Seferovic
My prediction: 1-1 draw, Iceland seem to have regained the strength that they have shown over the past few years. On the other hand, some Swiss players might be tired after an intense effort against Belgium.
Here are the odds for the match at Bet365:
Iceland win - 4.20
Draw - 3.70
Switzerland win - 1.80
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